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DIY Orange Pomander + Christmas Table Setting Ideas

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DIY Orange Pomander + Christmas Table Setting Ideas

Hello sweet Foxes! Christmas is now less than a week away, and I had one last surprise project in me before the big day. I made some traditional orange pomanders with cloves, and loved them so much, I decided to create a simple holiday table with them! I used the Cedar, Plaid & Pomegranate Table [click here] as a jumping off point and had the new look set in less than 5 minutes. 

Every year I want to do so many wonderful traditional Christmas activities, and craft, and bake, and try new ideas… and so often the holiday just whooshes right by me.

Not this year though. I decorated less, inadvertently ended up leaving my tree naked (don’t really regret it) and made time to bake, and paint, and just do the little things I miss out on so much. 

I’ve wanted to make orange pomanders for years. I even bought the whole cloves and everything! This year, Jimmy grabbed me some fresh oranges on a marketing trip, and I was not going to let them go to waste! Orange pomanders  are so simple to make and you can do any design you choose.

TIP: I found that you will most definitely want to have a knife with a sharp point on hand. All you have to do is gently puncture the skin, or score a line, and the cloves will then pop right in with light pressure! 

I went for a sort of starburst, a symmetrical design, a failed circular design (this was going to take way more whole cloves that I had on hand) and a monogram “F” for Fox. 

And Foxes, they smell divine! Within about a half hour, my entire upstairs smelled like a spicy citrus heaven!

If you read my last post you’ll know that the ivory crocheted lace tablecloth, fresh Cedar “table runner”, the centerpiece and the wood slice chargers were already in place.

In that post, I talked about how easy it would be to switch out plates, napkins, etc… for a brand new look, and how you could use what you had on hand to create a similar table, use a different accent color or go neutral. 

So here I am — I’m walking the walk!

I simply deleted all the red, and put a few fresh dishes in their place. 

As my base, I went with those kind of rustic, speckled black plates I used in my Cozy Cottage Cabin Christmas post [click here].  

I knew I was going to love those.

I may use them for New Years Eve as well! 

Next, a simple neutral striped napkin.

Lastly, the creamy white salad plate with the delicate dot detail. 

And LOOK, I even added silverware. 

The red wine glasses made way for clear glass… 

With those few small changes, it’s a whole new vibe! 

The cane chair backs are calling for black velvet ribbon now, don’t you think? 

Without the red, which I loved as well, it just feels quieter… 

It’s truly amazing how an entire mood can change, with color. 

I of course took way, waaay too many photos, as I’m want to do… but I did snap a quick shot of one of the new wood houses I painted. 

This one is very simple. And I just had THE best time sitting right here at my dining table painting for a few days. Okay, wow… I guess I might actually have one more post in me before Christmas. Because several of the wood houses have little Christmas trees, and nobody wants to see those after Christmas. We shall see. I’ll try!! 

Love & light, and a VERY Merry Christmas to you!! xo Shannon 

SEE MORE HOLIDAY IDEAS:

 

 

Comments

  1. Sara says

    thank you for sharing. Love your plate with the dot details, I have a dinner ware with blue floral print though, I must say white is the best color. Love the table decoration you have done, including the string lights that you have used on the side. It is simple yet very appealing.

    • Shannon Fox says

      Hi Sara! I saw so many beautiful blue Christmas elements this year, they were very tempting, but I had to abstain from collecting a new color and use what I had.
      It was hard though 😉 Many of the girls do a blue Christmas, adding in ornaments, embellishments and looks of festive greenery! I bet you could make yours work too.

  2. Pat says

    Shannon,
    I adore this light & love look in your Dining Room Tablescape!
    Those teal blue hues are gorgeous!
    The PoP of orange pomanders is the perfect accent!
    Merry Christmas!
    Pat

  3. Marie Batson says

    The pomanders I recall making years ago took a long time as we totally covered the orange with cloves so you couldn’t see any of the orange and then they were rolled in a powdered mixture of spices and orris root.
    This aged and preserved them for a very long time and we put netting around them and hung them by a ribbon in our closets. What a delightful aroma even stacked in a wooden bowl to scent the room!

    • Shannon Fox says

      I read something about covering them in netting, those sound so wonderful! I bet they were extra fragrant too.
      Mine were done with just one small jar of cloves, maybe I’ll invest in an extra next year!

  4. Shayna says

    When I was a kid, we always had oranges at Christmas and they brightened up the sideboard where the fruit bowl was and added a little pizazz to the red and green of Christmas colors. Your table is gorgeous. It still has a subtle look of Christmas without all the traditional red. It’s beautiful.

  5. Betty White says

    Your table looks beautiful. I do the orange pomander every year and love the scent. Sometimes I will do it several times in a year. When we take the ornaments off the tree we leave the lights on the tree till the next day when we it out. I am always telling David we should just put lights on it for one Christmas. I think it looks so magical with only lights on.

    • Shannon Fox says

      It was a most happy accident, as I intended to decorate. But now that I think of it, I did that little flocked tree forest that year and they were baked too.
      Maybe it’s my thing? hehe. Although my favorite tree ever was the pink one down at The Little Cottage. sigh…
      Wishing you a blessed & happy new year!!

  6. Louise says

    Beautiful As Usual! Always look forward to seeing what you are up to…..and I am with you….
    Simple is Best! More time for the important things. Merry Christmas To You and Yours!

DIY Orange Pomander + Christmas Table Setting Ideas -

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